Abstract: A method of operating a camera with a microfluidic lens to identify a depth of an object in image data generated by the camera has been developed. The camera generates an image with the object in focus, and a second image with the object out of focus. An image processor generates a plurality of blurred images from image data of the focused image, and identifies blur parameters that correspond to the object in the second image. The depth of the object from the camera is identified with reference to the blur parameters.

Abstract: A method of operating a camera with a microfluidic lens to identify a depth of an object in image data generated by the camera has been developed. The camera generates an image with the object in focus, and a second image with the object out of focus. An image processor generates a plurality of blurred images from image data of the focused image, and identifies blur parameters that correspond to the object in the second image. The depth of the object from the camera is identified with reference to the blur parameters.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for controlling an MPEG video media recording device to automatically identify and selectively skip segments of a video signal, such as commercial advertisements, during a recording session. During an MPEG video data recording session the system continuously monitors the video data being recorded to detect a scene change occurring over one or more image fields. In response to a detected scene change, the system stores in a file a time and record location on the media corresponding to the occurrence of the scene change. Depending upon the time interval between several of the detected scene changes, the system identifies a corresponding video segment as either a commercial advertisement or a chapter boundary. By identifying the segments in this way, the playback presentation can then be selectively controlled.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for preventing unauthorized use of DVDs on a DVD ROM drive. The method comprises a DVD disc that includes special data processing. When the DVD is replayed on a standard DVD ROM drive the invention causes the output of the DVD ROM drive to be erroneous, such that the computer cannot use the data. According to the invention, when encoding a disc, the error correction and/or error detection bits, check bytes, are moved into the normal or main data area. When this scrambled data is output from a standard DVD ROM drive, the data in the check byte area is lost and the information is not useable. For authorized use, this scrambling is reversed before sending video and/or audio data to the MPED decoder and AC-3 decoder respectively.